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PIB’S BULLETIN ON COVID-19
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Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka continue to report an upsurge in Daily New Cases, more than 1.56 cr vaccine doses administered till 7 am today
Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka continue to report a surge in the COVID daily new cases. Together, they account for 85.95% of the new cases reported in the past 24 hours. 14,989 new cases were registered in the last 24 hours. Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 7,863. It is followed by Kerala with 2,938 while Punjab reported 729 new cases. Maharashtra alone accounted for a weekly increase of 16,012 cases, in terms of the number of cases. In percentage terms, Punjab reported the weekly increase of 71.5% . India’s total Active Caseload has reached 1,70,126 today. India’s present active caseload now stands at 1.53% of India’s total Positive Cases. More than 1.56 cr  vaccine doses have been administered through 3,12,188 sessions, as per the provisional report till 7 am today. These include 67,42,187 HCWs , 27,13,144 HCWs , 55,70,230 FLWs  and 834 FLWs , 71,896 beneficiaries aged more than 45 years with specific co-morbidities  and 5,22,458 beneficiaries aged more than 60 years.As on Day-46 of the vaccination drive , total 7,68,730 vaccine doses were given. Out of which, 6,52,501 beneficiaries were vaccinated across 10,527 sessions for 1st dose  and 1,16,229 HCWs and FLWs received 2nd dose of vaccine.More than 1.08 Cr  people has recovered so far. 13,123 patients have recovered and got discharged in the last 24 hours.86.58% of the new recovered cases are observed to be concentrated in 6 States.Maharashtra has reported the maximum number of single day recoveries with 6,332 newly recovered cases. 3,512 people recovered in Kerala in the past 24 hours followed by 473 in Tamil Nadu. 98 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours. Four States account for 88.78% of the new deaths. Maharashtra saw the maximum casualties . Kerala follows with 16 daily deaths and Punjab reported 10 deaths in the last 24 hours. Twenty-Four States/UTs have not reported any COVID19 deaths in the last 24 hours.
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PM takes first dose of COVID-19 vaccine
Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi took his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccineon 1st March, 2021, at AIIMS New Delhi. In a tweet, the Prime Minister said, "Took my first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at AIIMS. Remarkable how our doctors and scientists have worked in quick time to strengthen the global fight against COVID-19. I appeal to all those who are eligible to take the vaccine. Together, let us make India COVID-19 free!"
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Policy Dialogue on COVID-19 Vaccine organized by CSIR-NISTADS and CSIR-NISCAIR
CSIR Institutions CSIR-NISTADS and CSIR-NISCAIR, New Delhi jointly organized a half-day session on “A Policy Dialogue on COVID-19 Vaccine from Self-Reliance to Global Leadership: Opportunities, Challenges, and Policy Imperatives in COVID Era” recently. This event was organised to celebrate the National Science Day and to have a policy discourse from eminent personalities on the journey of indigenous development of the COVID-19 vaccine in the midst of the pandemic. It focussed on the opportunities available, the challenges faced and the policy imperatives for a way forward to become a global leader not only in the COVID-19 vaccine but also in vaccines in general. Dr Shekhar C. Mande, Secretary, DSIR and Director General- CSIR, Dr Shailja Vaidya Gupta, Senior Adviser- Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the GoI, Delhi, Dr S K Varshney, Adviser & Head International Cooperation, DST, New Delhi, Dr Anurag Agrawal, Director, CSIR-IGIB, New Delhi, Dr Geetha Vani Rayasam, Head, SCDD, CSIR and Dr Ranjana Aggarwal, Director CSIR-NISTADS and CSIR- NISCAIR shared their views on COVID-19 vaccine, in this virtual event. The event saw active participation of academicians, young researchers, professionals and students.
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Private Sector Participation is being Scaled Up in COVID Vaccination
Around 10,000 hospitals under Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY and 687 hospitals under CGHS can be used by States as COVID Vaccination Centres 
Shri Rajesh Bhushan, Union Health Secretary on Saturday interacted with Health Secretaries and MDs  of States and UTs on the vaccination of age-appropriate groups through a video conference . The nationwide COVID-19 Vaccination drive was launched on 16thJanuary, 2021. From this date onwards, Health Care Workers  were given the first dose of the COVID vaccine while Front Line Workers  were included from 2nd February, 2021. So far, more than 1.5 core vaccinations have been done. This nationwide vaccination program has been exponentially expanded to all citizens above 60 years of age, and those within the age bracket of 45 to 59 years with specified co-morbidities from 1st March, 2021. Around 10,000 private hospitals empanelled under Ayushman Bharat PMJAY, more than 600 hospitals empanelled under CGHS and other private hospitals empanelled under State Govts.
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Cabinet Secretary reviews Surge in COVID cases in Telangana, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab, J&K and West Bengal
Cabinet Secretary Shri Rajiv Gauba chaired a high level review meeting on Saturday with Chief Secretaries of States/UTs of Maharashtra, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Telangana and Jammu & Kashmir. These States /UTs have been reporting a high active caseload or an increasing trend in new cases in the last week. The meeting to review and discuss the COVID management and response strategy, held through video conference, was attended by the Chief Secretaries and senior health professionals of the States/UTs along with the Union Health Secretary, DG ICMR, NITI Aayog Empowered Group members, and representatives from Home Ministry.A detailed presentation was made on the current status of COVID-19 in the States of Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat with a focus on districts reporting increasing number of new cases, increasing trend in positivity and having a concerning testing trends. This was followed by a comprehensive review with all the States/UTs. The Chief Secretaries briefed about the current situation in the States and their preparedness to tackle the recent spike of COVID cases. Cabinet Secretary reiterated that States need to maintain a continued rigorous vigil in terms of containing the spread and not squander away the gains of the collective hard work of the last year. The States were advised to take the following steps:Improve the overall testing in districts reporting reduction in testing, Increase RT- PCR tests in states & districts having high antigen testing, Refocus on surveillance and stringent containment in selected districts reporting reduced tests/high positivity & increased cases,Monitor mutant strain & clustering of cases for early hotspot identification & control, Focus on clinical management in districts reporting higher deaths, Undertake priority vaccination in districts reporting higher cases, Promote COVID-appropriate behavior ensure effective citizen communication to not let complacency set in, especially in light of vaccination drive entering the next phase, and enforcing stringent social distancing measures.
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Union Health Secretary and Chairman, Empowered Group on Vaccine Administration chair meet on COVID vaccination of Age-Appropriate Groups with States and UTs
Shri Rajesh Bhushan, Union Health Secretary along with Dr. R. S. Sharma, Chairman of Empowered Group on Vaccine Administration  and member, National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration of COVID-19  chaired a high-level meeting on Friday with Health Secretaries and MDs  of States and UTs on the vaccination of age-appropriate groups through a video conference .The nationwide COVID-19 Vaccination drive was launched on 16th January, 2021. This is now to be exponentially expanded to all citizens above 60 years of age, andthose within the age bracket of 45 to 59 years with specified co-morbiditiesthose within the age bracket of 45 to 59 years with specified co-morbiditiesfrom 1st March, 2021. The States and UTs were explained the basic features of version 2.0 of the digital platform CO-Win, which is a population-scale software with capacity of processing several thousands of entries. The new phase of vaccination of age-appropriate groups will expand the COVID vaccination in the country manifold. With a citizen –centric approach, the fundamental shift in this phase is that citizens in the identified age groups, as also those healthcare workers and frontline who have been missed out or left out of the present phase of vaccination, can select vaccination centres of their choice. Secondly, the private sector hospitals will be involved as COVID Vaccination centres to harness their potential to expand the vaccination capacities.
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Dr. Harsh Vardhan addresses the Global Indian Physicians Congress
Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare on Sunday addressed the Global Indian Physicians Congress, organized by the Global Association for Physicians of Indian Origin , through video conference. Expressing his appreciation to GAPIO, which since its inception in 2011 has endeavoured to bring 1.4 million physicians of Indian origin across the world on a single platform to facilitate exchange of knowledge, skills and research, Dr Harsh Vardhan called the association a shining example of the talent and caliber of Indian physicians who have made remarkable contributions in various fields of medicine across the globe. Praising the contribution of medical professionals in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr Harsh Vardhan said, “As the world faced the unprecedented crisis of COVID19, it has been our doctors, nurses and healthcare workers who have cemented their position as the foremost champions of humanity, saving humankind as it was staring at an existential crisis. I salute their courage, valour and selflessness in serving society. No words are enough to express gratitude towards all the Corona Warriors, who risked their own lives to save the lives of others. It’s unfortunate and a great personal loss for me that so many of them lost their lives during this time.” In this context, the Union Minister also noted GAPIO’s efforts towards establishing the Global Indian Physician COVID-19 Collaborative to continuously share their knowledge and experiences to arrive at the best possible approach for management of COVID-19.
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Dr Harsh Vardhan gives away awards to science communicators and women scientists on National Science Day
Union Minister for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Health & Family Welfare, Dr. Harsh Vardhan on Sunday highlighted how science technology and innovation  would impact our future in education, skills and functioning in the post-pandemic world. He was addressing the National Science Day  funFction through video-conferencing from Imphal, Manipur. Awards to science communicators and women scientists were also conferred by the Science &Technology Minister on the occasion of National Science Day which is celebrated to commemorate the discovery of Raman Effect on this day every year. The NSD celebrations were organized by the National Council for Science Technology Communication , Department of Science & Technology. Dr. Harsh Vardhan said, “The 30 percent increase in the budget of Ministry of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences put together for the year 2021-22 would provide stimulus to S&T infrastructure resources in the country”. The Union Minister said that in view of last year's challenges thrown by the COVID-19 pandemic, the theme of the National Science Day 2021, ‘Future of STI: Impacts on Education, Skills, and Work,’ becomes all the more important. Dr. Harsh Vardhan said, “World has witnessed how Indian S&T systems rose to this recent unprecedented crisis caused by the pandemic. Scientific awareness and health preparedness shall become even more important in post-COVID 19 times.
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Union Chemicals & Fertilizers Minister inaugurates a four day Global Investors meet: India Pharma 2021 & India Medical Devices 2021
Union Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Shri D V Sadananda Gowda inaugurated a four-day Global Investors meet: India Pharma 2021 & India Medical Devices 2021 on Thursday. Minister of Commerce and Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal was virtually present on the occasion. Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers, Shri Mansukh L Mandaviya, also graced the occasion. Speaking on the occasion Shri DV Sadananda Gowda commended India’s capabilities as a global and reliable supplier of drugs and medical devices during the COVID-19 pandemic. Citing the recent UNCTAD report, he also pointed out India’s positive FDI growth even with a decline in FDI of 42% globally. Shri Gowda said, “As the pandemic exposed the global vulnerabilities of the supply chains in the pharmaceuticals sector, the Department of Pharmaceuticals launched the Production Linked Incentive Scheme for bulk drugs, with a financial outlay of ₹6,940 crores across 53 APIs over 6 years. For Medical Devices, another PLI scheme was announced with an outlay of ₹3,420. Such interventions & incentives have played an instrumental role in realizing Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, or India for the world.” Addressing the participants Shri Piyush Goyal said, “57 countries have already joined India's leadership in demanding Intellectual Property Waiver for COVID-19 vaccine. Leaders everywhere are rising up to the challenge and joining PM Modi Ji’s call for affordable health for the entire world. Globally, India is one stop solution provider for the entire health ecosystem, and we are confident enough to deal with anything related to health. Regulatory & good manufacturing practices, systems and certifications, approvals, will always help us grow in scale and bring down the price.”
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In spite of Covid Challenges, on 28th February 2021, Indian Railways surpasses last year's Cumulative freight loading for same period corresponding
In spite of Covid challenges, on 28th February 2021, Indian Railways surpassed last year's Cumulative freight loading for same period corresponding. Freight figures continue to maintain the high momentum in terms of loading, earning and speed in the month of February 2021 as well for Indian Railways. Yesterday’s loading crossed 5 million tonnes. As on 28 February 2021 Indian Railways cumulative freight loading was 1102.17 million tonnes for this year which is higher compare to last year for the same period. On a month to month basis, upto February 28 , 2021, Indian Railways loading was 112.25 million tonnes, which is almost 10 % higher compared to loading up to February 28 of last year. . On day to day basis, on 28th February, 2021, the freight loading of Indian Railways was 5.23 million tonnes, which is 36% higher compare to last year’s loading for the same date .
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COVID 19 Vaccination sessions not scheduled on Saturday and Sunday  in wake of IT System Transition from Co-Win 1.0 to Co-Win 2.0
The COVID vaccination was launched on 16th January by the Honourable Prime Minister. The country wide Vaccination exercise is being exponentially expanded to include those above 60 years of age and those above 45 years with co-morbidities, from 1st March 2021.
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INPUTS FROM PIB FIELD OFFICES
- Kerala: As the second phase of the vaccination drive is progressing in the State by recording a good response, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine from a government hospital in the state capital. After the vaccination, the Chief Minister appealed to all to take the vaccine. Three other Ministers including State Health Minister K.K.Shylaja too their first dose of vaccine yesterday. Shylaja had stated that the possibility of mass vaccination centres is also looked into. Authorities have meanwhile directed to complete the two rounds of vaccination for 3.8 lakh officials to be deployed for election duties by March 6. So far only half of the poll officials have received the vaccine. As the vaccine-makers claim that immunity against COVID-19 will develop only 14 days after a person takes the two doses in an interval of 28 days, many polling officers would be still uncovered or susceptible to the disease as they take up duties for the April 6 election in Kerala. However, doctors at the health department said that immunity starts developing after the first dose itself.
- Tamil Nadu: State Health department has requested the Election Commission to form special teams to monitor the spread of Covid in election campaign meets. The Central Council of Indian Medicine and Ministry of Ayush have presented ‘Ayush Excellence award’ to Siddha practitioner Baskar for his outstanding contribution towards COVID-19 management in Tamil Nadu Following rise in Covid cases, number of testing centres have been increased in the border areas of Tamil Nadu. Also, the government has issued new guidelines, which say those coming from Kerala and Maharashtra would be quarantined. Meanwhile, those above 60 have been asked to register their names for vaccination.
- Karnataka: As on date, Karnataka recorded 9,52,037 total cases, 12343 deaths, 5945 active cases and 9,33,730 discharges.
- Andhra Pradesh: Andhra Pradesh has reported 106 new COVID-19 infections in the 24 hours ending Tuesday morning. For the fourth consecutive day, no death was reported and the toll stands at 7,169. The tally increased to 8,90,080 and the number of recoveries stands at 8,82,137. For the first time in months, the number of active cases gradually increased during the past week as the number of daily new infections over-passed the number of daily recoveries. As of Tuesday morning, there were 774 active cases in the State. In the past week, 671 new infections were reported, and only 471 patients recovered. The overall recovery rate slightly decreased to 99.11 per cent and the death rate remains at 0.81 per cent. The number of samples tested so far crossed 1.4-crore mark and reached 1,40,10,123 with a positivity rate of 6.35 per cent. The last 10 lakh samples were tested in 34 days and their positivity rate was 0.25 per cent. With the latest rise in the cases, the officials have geared up again to arrest the further spread of the virus.
- Telangana: As part of the nation-wide drive, the second phase of Covid-19 vaccination drive for priority age groups in Telangana commenced on Monday with inoculation of 4,558 individuals above 60 years and those aged between 45 and 59 with co-morbid conditions at 93 identified Covid Vaccination Centres in government and private hospitals. State Health Minister EatalaRajender was inoculated at the Area Hospital in Huzurabad of Karimnagar district on the first day. A 100-year-old person Jaidev Chowdhary got vaccinated in a private hospital in Hyderabad. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Shri G.Kishan Reddy took the vaccine at Gandhi Hospital on Tuesday. The number of Govt and private health facilities across the state increased to 135 and a total of 13,081 elderly and persons with co-morbidities were inoculated till yesterday evening. Apart from this, a total of 1,98,628 health care workers and 97,822 frontline workers received the first dose. And, a total of 1,49,623 health care workers and 16  front line workers were inoculated the second dose. Thus, the cumulative number of vaccinations in the state stands at 4,59,170. The doctors, health care workers and sanitation staff of Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad, which served as the MAIN COVID HOSPITAL in the state during the pandemic, were felicitated by the State Health Minister yesterday to mark the completion of one year of treating first Covid patient in the state.
- Maharashtra: 29 private hospitals in Mumbai have been given permissions to carry out COVID vaccination. The decision was taken to increase the speed of the vaccination drive as long queues were seen outside the designated vaccination centres in Mumbai and number of beneficiaries had to wait long to get the dose of the Covid-19 vaccine yesterday.
New Cases - 7,863
Recoveries - 6,332
Deaths - 54
Active Cases - 79,093
Total Cases till date - 21,69,330
Total Recoveries till date - 20,36,790
Total Deaths till date - 52,238
- Gujarat: No COVID related deaths occurred on Tuesday in Gujarat. While 9,41,602 people in the state have received the first dose of the vaccine till date, more than 1.97 lakh have also received the second dose so far. Further, 56,489 people aged above 60 years have also been vaccinated till date.
New Cases - 454
Active Cases – 2522
Recoveries on Tuesday- 361
- Rajasthan: State has recorded 102 new cases on Tuesday. Number of positive cases reported in the state so far is 3,20,557. More than 3.16 lakh people have recovered already.
New Cases – 102
Total positive cases – 3,20,557
Total recoveries- 3,16,430
Total deaths - 2787
- Madhya Pradesh: 259 COVID-19 patients recovered on Tuesday, taking the state's overall recovery count to 2,55,595. The state reported a total of 331 new positive cases and no death yesterday. No new infection case was recorded in 15 out of the total 52 districts in the state during the day.
New Cases – 331
Recovered patients- 259
Deaths- 0
Active cases- 2973
Total positive cases- 2,62,433
Total recovered patients- 2,55,595
Total Deaths –3865
Total number of people tested-
- Chhattisgarh: State has recorded 216 new cases on Tuesday. Number of positive cases reported in the state so far is 3,13,032. More than 3.06 lakh people have recovered already.
New Cases - 216
Recovered patients - 19
Deaths- 2
Active Cases- 2,836
Total recovered patients- 3,06,352
Total Deaths - 3844
Total positive cases- 3,13,032
- Goa: There were 62 recoveries yesterday taking the total recoveries to 53,695. Recovery rate in state is at 97.49%.
Active Cases – 582
Total recovered patients- 53,695
Total deaths- 796
Total positive cases- 55,073
- Assam: In Assam, 15 new COVID-19 cases detected and 14 patients discharged on Tuesday. Total cases rise to 217585, total discharged 214860 and total death 1093. Active cases 285.
- Manipur: In Manipur, 8 new COVID-19 cases detected on Tuesday. Total cases rise to 29,282 and total discharged 28,876.
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